


Falling into Death's Embrace

by Hydr4gon (Arceus6892)



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, Angst, Fluff, M/M, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-30
Updated: 2019-07-30
Packaged: 2020-07-26 00:49:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20035111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arceus6892/pseuds/Hydr4gon
Summary: Set in medieval times, Keito is a well-respected sage and Eichi rules as a king over his country.  In a time of restlessness, sometimes rash actions must be taken to preserve the peace they fought so hard to protect.I wrote this for ESO prompt 82: "Eichi/Keito, Keito/Rei, and/or Keito/Souma Medieval AU. Love triangles, fantasy tropes, and violence/chara death are ok! Please do not include other romantic ships or overly villainous Eichi."





	Falling into Death's Embrace

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing anything for any ship/characters outside of Knights, but I tried my best! Apologies in advance if the portrayals aren't on point, but I hope it's still okay. It's a little bit on the darker side so be warned. 
> 
> Thank you for reading!

"Incorrigible." With a click of his tongue, Keito glared down at the scroll in front of him. The list of problems had been growing endless; while Eichi was able to extinguish any flames of rebellion among the people, the restlessness continued to grow.

Earlier, he'd sent some of the king’s men to keep a close eye on the civilians, taking note of any issues that arose. Riots in particular were the most troublesome. Earlier in the day, he'd heard of a protest breaking loose in the town square. Since it would cause more issues to simply let it slide, men were sent in to take care of the situation. By "take care," it involved using any means necessary. It was the cost they paid for peace.

It was not just within their own country where their concerns were held. While there had been no direct movement taken from either of the countries that bordered theirs, word of a war was already spreading. Restlessness existed in both inside and out of their territory.

Keito furrowed his brow as he folded up the paper in his hands. There was still a lot of work to be done. The peace he'd hoped to attain was steadily crumbling. It felt like this was only the start, that something even more meddlesome will take its place. A full on revolution was the last thing they needed. Just thinking about the costs and the resources they'd require to rebuild the place was beginning to give him a headache.

He walked down the familiar hallway to the throne room. As a respected sage, he had a fair amount of influence. Not nearly as much in comparison to his long-time childhood friend, but enough that moving in and out of the castle proved no hassle.

The inside of the castle was by far the most extravagant Keito had stepped into. Golden-brown walls painted red and inscribed with various patterns, designs, even sculptures and paintings done by blossoming artists. Ever since the boom of art and music, Eichi was not hesitant to get his hands on the highest quality of anything he could find.

Needless to say, the throne room was the most impressive. While someone can take a step down the hallway and become mesmerized with the walls for hours, only the trusted few were fortunate enough to step inside the throne room. The red and gold carpeted floor led him down a long, open corridor with pillars that stretched high up to the ceiling. When it was getting dark, the servants lit candles that paved way to the throne itself. However, as the sun was still high in the sky, beams of light made their way through the stained-glass windows.

Eichi's usual, smiling face greeted Keito as he stepped closer. The expression that was normally difficult to decipher, but Keito had gotten used to reading into his intentions. At least, to some extent. There were still many times where he had been caught by surprise.

"Eichi." He was quick to call out his name, the stern tone matching the look on his face. He let the rolled-up paper unfurl as he held it out to him. "This is a report of the activities outside the castle. We've been deploying soldiers to go through standard patrol, but it hasn't been enough."

With a similarly amused look, he took a glance before determining his decision.

"Fufu. Have you been working on a solution this whole time? You have been looking paler every day. You have a habit of nagging me for every blunder, but when it comes to your own health, you seem to neglect it."

Without much concern for the problem, he dismissed it even before he could even look through all that was on the page. He stood up from his seat, crossing his arms as he faced Keito.

“It is a bit exciting, having this kind of commotion once in a while...but, it would not serve the country well if we were to break into a civil war," he continued to muse.

Even though his expression barely shifted at all, Keito didn't hesitate to point it out.

"What are you scheming, Eichi? If it's something senseless, I object to it immediately."

"Fufu. It hurts that you would think that I am thinking up something awful merely because I'm bored."

"That is exactly the kind of thing I would expect. Don't go off doing something careless. How is your health? In this heat, if you push your body too much, you'll end up collapsing."

Already disinterested in listening to his lectures, Eichi started to wander down the throne room. Unsure of his intentions, Keito followed suit. If he was even a minute out of sight, the endless worries ran through his mind.

The light from the stained-glass windows delivered a colorful spectrum that landed on Eichi's pale complexion.

"Goodness, it has been a couple days since we even had the chance to speak in length with each other, yet all I have heard is your nagging." He turned back around, the glittering colors dancing along the almost lifeless, ghost-like face of a king. "Keito, you are always frowning. This is exciting, for once there is something starting to happen. This might just become one of those stories we heard when we were young. I don't want to sit atop that throne and wilt away with an end no more significant than a bothersome weed. I am the type of character who is written away without a happy ending, one who is met steeped in early bloodshed. If I simply choose to sit on that throne twiddling my thumbs, I watch as the country burns to ashes with no different of an ending for myself."

"I do not know how much longer I will be alive. I am always told that my body is weak, that I will be dead the next day. So for as long as I am still breathing, I would like to take you with me. To create those stories that entertained us so much...but I'm sure that you have already gotten tired, watching my back every second in fear, not knowing what will be the end of me."

"What are you suggesting?" Keito interrupted. His brows furrowed the more words left Eichi's mouth. He was definitely planning something reckless. "If you push yourself too much, your body will give out. At this rate, you might seriously die, so please take care of yourself more."

Disappointment hidden away with a smile, Eichi turned the other way and continued walking down the hallway. The more frustrated and annoyed Keito got, the more it amused him.

"For the rebellious ones, I want to see how far they are willing to push themselves. Of course, their protests should be quieted...but I don't want to see them killed. It isn't time for that." As if on cue, a soldier burst through the entrance as Eichi neared the doorway. He bowed and addressed him with utmost politeness, almost wary that he might say something wrong and be skewered for it. He delivered notice of another ruckus starting up in one of the more politically affiliated parts of town. Realizing that it was time for him to head back and reclaim peace, Keito rushed out with a sigh.

* * *

"Where's Eichi?" Keito's demands boomed across the hallways. He'd searched every room, checked every part of the palace twice. If this was another one of his tricks, he wasn't up for it.

With each passing moment, the looming feeling of dread grew larger until it swallowed him up in its shadow. Whatever talk they had yesterday, was it pointing to something bigger? Just what kind of plan was he concocting, and why had he not come to him for advice? As someone who helps devise and come up with strategies for running the kingdom, surely it would be the most logical thing to do.

He glanced around for the other soldiers. Surely, someone must have an idea. It made no sense that they could just idle here without a care in the world that their king was not sitting in his throne.

"You," he called out, alerting the attention of one of the soldiers. He looked surprised, but that moment of nervousness faded to the usual stern, impassive state. Almost as if preparing for whatever Keito was about to ask.

"Have you seen Eichi? How can you simply stand here and do nothing while your king could be in danger? I have told him to take better care of his health, and now he is gone. If you can simply let this pass without a reason why, I shall have your head. Where is he?"

The soldier pretended not to be affected by his threats, but it was clear in his hesitance that he was hiding something.

"He is out on an errand, sir."

"Tell me where."

"I do not know, sir."

"You don't know? How incorrigible. Anyone can see through such a transparent lie." Keito's demands grew more ruthless with each second that he pondered whatever ridiculous scheme Eichi might be up to. Unable to withstand the pressure, the soldier finally caved.

"I'm sorry, sir. He told me, 'No matter what, you absolutely cannot tell Keito about this,'" the soldier paused, quickly thinking through his words. "But if you must know, he is currently leading an army into battle right along the border of this country and that of our neighbors."

Keito's face paled. His eyes seemed to stare elsewhere, out to a different dimension, feet glued to the ground like they were encased in stone. Eichi, on the front lines? In the middle of all that bloodshed, where he can be easily taken down with but one stray arrow?

Without a need to say more, he turned back and ran towards the stables. He needed to get there, immediately. There was not a second to waste.

"How utterly foolish," he muttered to himself. His feet hit the pavement as he quickly ran in to ask for the fastest horse that they had. "Why is it that I, of everyone here, am the only one not to be informed of such a dangerous, irrational decision? Normally, I can understand your intentions to some extent, but this...Why?"

With a shake of his head, he let out a sigh. He was going to find him and bring him back in one piece. There was no doubt in his mind. No matter his fallibility, this wasn't the way he was going to let him die.

Grabbing his bow and quiver stuffed with arrows, he climbed onto the horse and directed it to the very place he'll find his childhood friend.

* * *

The battle was certainly nothing to be scoffed at. The other country must have been preparing for a long time because they were equipped with sturdy, refined weapons and at least hundreds of soldiers defending the front lines alone. Horses whinnied in protest to the swings of swords and flurry of arrows. From long-ranged javelins and ballistae to swords and axes, just stepping into the battleground without a whole body of armor meant instant defeat. If this is just the start, there's no telling just how much of their strength they have reserved for later.

"Move! Where's Eichi? Direct me to him!" His voice boomed over the shouts but not enough to gain anyone's attention. Everyone was focused on his own battle against the opponent. Organization was breaking apart. Despite the full-blown surprise assault against the enemy, they were holding their own rather well and quickly tearing into their forces.

Scowling in frustration, he directed his horse to run across the field while keeping it steady in the heat of the fighting. With the speed that it was running at, he was at an advantage for avoiding oncoming attacks but not in the state where he can afford more than a second to stand in one place. 

His eyes scanned the area for that figure he could normally easily spot. Amidst the commotion, he was able to make out a familiar blonde head sitting atop one of the castle's horses. The horse wore a specially decorated saddle that distinguished it from the rest. One especially ordered by the king himself.

"Eichi!!!" He shouted out his name in hope that he would turn around, but that alone was a foolish decision. One he would curse himself for until he could no longer sleep at night from the thought. One simple, yet careless decision, and his realization that perhaps this is exactly why Eichi hadn't told him to come.

“ _ I'm sure that you have already gotten tired, watching my back every second in fear, not knowing what will be the end of me."  _ The words Eichi had uttered. What was their meaning? His words always meant more than what he explicitly stated aloud.

Seeing his falling figure, it occurred to him. That perhaps he hadn't meant exactly that—that he thought Keito was getting tired of taking care of him. No, it was surely more than that. That he did not want to have him always looking over his shoulder for his sake. This must have been another one of his challenges, ones where he'd enjoy irritating him to the core where he could really die from stress but know he'll understand that he is to be treated as an equal, not as some frail figure meant to be caressed with careful hands.

He knew that he would be worrying over him. So much so that his own life would likely be in jeopardy. He could never attempt something so rash with Keito there to stop him, so that's why he ran off on his own, isn't it? That's why he carelessly dove into battle, unsure of whether life or death would await. 

Because he followed him and called out, his voice became his distraction. The enemy closed in and drew their swords, but they could not get close enough to reach. No, only someone from the back lines could be so careful as to seek out the chink in his armor in that very precise moment that his concentration wavered. A sniper. One hiding behind a broken down building or up in a tree, hidden away from clear sight.

Just one arrow was all it would take. To take out his frail body. To shoot his friend through the heart. His dearly treasured friend whom he could quarrel with for hours and still call his friend.

"Eichi...No...No, I won't let you fall here!" In an instant, Keito jumped off his horse to catch him as he fell down. His body landed in his arms, the arrow clearly wedged into his flesh and sticking out from his shoulder. In a frustrated yell, he tore it out of him and covered up the wound tightly with cloth to keep him from bleeding out.

That smile, always so serene. It was filled with an equal sense of tragedy and peace. Like this was always something he expected but never truly learned to accept. His chest heaved weakly, breath barely coming out.

"I thought I made sure...You would not be able to make it here. But, you have always been one to chase me down even when it seemed like I had a perfect plan woven together. Fufu, my unkind, always strict, always nagging friend. Even if it means putting your own life at risk, you would do so for my sake...That is why, you, of everyone..." He broke into a cough, blood splattering into his hand. "...I did not want to come here. I wished to give back to you your freedom, your dream, so you do not have to live for my sake anymore. You've always been...too much of a worrier."

His eyes were tinted with melancholy as he stared up at that distraught face of the person he held most dear.

"You always scolded me for being too selfish. Whenever I did something like that, you would lecture me like a demon. So even now...are you going to lecture me? For doing something so selfish. I always thought, that the you who has shown me something warm even in the face of death, would be the one to send my soul to heaven."

While Eichi continued to talk, Keito harshly called for a medic as he carried him off the battlefield, holding him up in his arms. His vision was clouded but he wouldn't let this be the end just yet. He won't let him be this selfish, just like he said.

"No...I won't, I won't allow for this," he managed between frantic shouting for a medic to come treat his wounds. Several rushed over at once, but he still held tightly onto his hand even as they worked on treating the area where he was shot.

"You are always so careless with your health even though I do nothing but remind you every day that you should take better care of it," he spoke, still scolding him while his voice struggled to steady itself. "Making these rash decisions without my input. Rather than discussing with me, we always end up in these quarrels. I always knew I'd spend my life fighting with you—No, laughing and crying with all my might."

His usually stern expression turned to something gentler, and Eichi returned the gesture. Those sad eyes held a glimmer of hope. The very kind of expression that puts Keito at ease. The peaceful smile remained etched into his motionless lips as his eyes steadily closed. Keito's grip on his hand grew stronger. His knuckles were white as sheets. While he could still feel the blood pumping from his heart, he wasn't about to let go.

* * *

The throne room felt so empty. It had been desolate for months now with no one to occupy it, no one with a purpose to go inside. Kept from the people to prevent any more chaos from breaking out, the only ones who had any access to it since were those doing standard cleaning checks.

It had been a while since Keito stepped a foot inside. But after enough mulling over, they had reached a decision.

Holding onto his hand as he guided him down towards the throne, he was almost afraid to let it go. While bandages were long removed, the scars still reminded him every day of his careless error. However, it was nothing compared to the relief that he felt with being blessed by that familiar sight of Eichi in his rightful place on the throne. The throne they fought so hard for to keep.

That smile he wasn't sure he would be able to see again gleamed back at him, the usual amusement in his eyes every time Keito would grow frustrated or annoyed in some way.

"Keito, I believe I am not so in need of extensive care that you should be pressing on my hand that hard. You really will cut off my circulation. It would be rather troublesome, despite how delightful it is to see you worrying so much over me.”

With an exasperated sigh, the troubled sage pushed up the rim of his glasses. He readied his voice to prepare a lecture but was cut off by Eichi. He held a bouquet of flowers in his hand; all the roses were trimmed clean so that nothing should be sharp enough to prick him.

"However, I never did show my appreciation for these flowers. They are quite a beautiful, lively color... ♪  I could stare into them and become enraptured by their pretty exterior, but in a matter of time even something like this will wilt and wither away...even then, I might just make an effort to preserve them for a little longer." Going on in a way that no one outside their conversation could understand, Eichi let out a slight chuckle that he covered with the back of his hand. Keito furrowed his eyebrows. This certainly didn't seem like a situation where laughing would be appropriate.

Despite knowing that, a part of him found it rather ridiculous as well. The person he knew had the most risk for dying at a young age was always the most willing to increase that probability for himself somehow. As if he thought that somehow, he had the power to fight against the odds. That part of him, it was equally absurd as it was admirable. He'd always been one to fight with all his might.

“I'm still struggling to walk for too long, and it's awfully boring in this castle," Eichi began, already trailing off again as he gazed at the golden light coming from the castle windows. "Remember when we were young, and you used to tell me stories by my bedside? Perhaps we have long outgrown such childish folklore and myths, but if it is by you, I would like to hear some more."

He faced back towards him, that radiant smile filling Keito with a sense of warmth. And when he shows him that kind of smile, a part of him can't help but return it.

"Of course. There are some interesting books I've been reading since you were resting. I'll bring those out in a hurry."

"No, I do not mean books; I want to hear more of your own stories. I, too, want to spend my days laughing and crying with you until I die. Whether it be the stories you used to create or simply the ones you have lived through, I would like to hear their tales become woven into reality and bring light into this lonely throne room."

The gentle smile, more so than ever, caused a flutter in Keito's heart. The way he held the bouquet he worked hard to get so carefully in his hands. The way he treasured everything he ever made for him. With Eichi's next words, Keito wondered if he had finally found a way to reach his heart.

"You are the only one I allow to be forever by my side."


End file.
